EU agrees to continue funding stem cell research

Funding from the European Union will be available for research involving human embryonic stem cells for at least the next seven years, under an agreement reached in Brussels this week.

The decision was taken only after the European Commission gave a firm guarantee that “projects which include research activities which destroy human embryos, including for the procurement of stem cells,” would not be eligible for EU funding.

The commission's statement continued: “The exclusion of funding of this step of research will not prevent [European] Community funding of subsequent steps involving …